Time Allocation

1. 1

   In September/October of 2012, small-business owners worked an average of 50 hours in the prior week. Forty-eight (48) percent of them worked between 50 and 69 hours. The week was typical according to 79 percent of small employer respondents with the remainder virtually split between those working unusually long hours (11%) and those working unusually short hours (10%).

2. 2

   The number of hours worked appears unrelated to the major demographic factors examined, such as employee size-of-business, industry or years of ownership. The exception is personal age. Once an owner reaches 65, hours are reduced.

3. 3

   Small-business owners spent two-thirds (67%) of their working hours at the firm’s primary business location (home, for a home-based business), 6 percent at home and 27 percent working neither in the firm’s primary location nor the home. The latter could include work at job sites, on sales calls, making deliveries, etc.

4. 4

   Thirteen (13) percent spent one or more nights away from home last week on business.

5. 5

   The two business activities or functions occupying the most time for the largest number of small employers was producing goods and services and customer relations or service.

6. 6

   Nine percent spent the entire week performing one business activity. Another 56 percent spent at least 50 percent of their time on the one consuming the most time. While owners must be flexible and prepared to bounce from problem to problem, most focus their time on one or two activities in a single week. These data are at odds with the more traditional image of small employers hopping from activity to activity all day long.

7. 7

   The most frequent number of activities performed in a week was two (28%). However, nearly as many small employers performed six (21%) activities, five (16%) or seven (11%).

8. 8

   Thirty-five (35) percent thought that they were misallocating their time, that they should be spending more time on some business activities and less time on others. Of those who thought their time misallocated, 31 percent believed that they should be spending more time on selling or marketing and another 20 percent said they should spend more on planning and strategizing. Less consensus appeared over the activities on which they should be spending less time. Eighteen (18) percent identified producing goods and services, and another 17 percent identified finance as areas occupying too much of their time. Thirteen (13) percent who thought they should spend more time on at least one activity, volunteered that they are spending too little time in no area. In effect, this group thinks that it is not putting in enough hours overall!

9. 9

   Small-business owners clearly prefer some business tasks to others. The most frequent favorite of 34 percent is customer service or relations. Customer care is followed by 25 percent best liking producing goods and services, such as a contractor actively participating in the construction of a house or a medical practitioner taking care of patients, and 14 percent preferring selling or marketing. The least liked business tasks focus on finance (37%) and employee-related matters (26%), from hiring/firing to training and benefits.

10. 10

    Small-business owners begin developing a management hierarchy when they are still quite small, perhaps as a necessity to cover when they are not immediately present. Thus, 43 percent of those with fewer than 10 employees have at least one who has managerial or supervisory responsibilities as part of their job. That figure rises to 96 percent in enterprises employing 20 or more people. However, the number having one or more employees who are primarily managers or supervisors with few if any other responsibilities is considerably smaller (12%).

Volume 12, Issue 5, 2012
ISSN 1534-8326

William J. Dennis, Jr.
NFIB Research Foundation

• 1Is this business operated primarily from the home, including any associated structures such as a garage or a barn?
• 2Last week, about how many hours did you spend working for this business regardless of location or time of day? An estimate is fine.
• 2aWas that a typical week, or did you spend more time or less time working for the business than usual? Is that a lot more time or somewhat more time? Is that a lot less time or somewhat less time?
• 2a1Were the unusual hours related to typical seasonality, a significant no-seasonal sales change, too many/too few employees, vacation or time-off, or something else?
• 2bYou might have worked at your business last week or worked outside your business, such as a job site, making sales calls, or traveling. About what percent of your working hours last week did you spend working from your primary business location?
• 2cYou might have worked at your business last week, at home, or outside your business, such as at a job site, making sales calls or traveling. About what percent of your working hours last week did you spend working from your primary business location?
• 2c1About what percentage did you spend working at home? An estimate is fine.
• 3Did you spend one or more nights during the last week away from home on business?
• 4Last week, which business activity took up most of your work time? Was it:?
• 4aPlease estimate the percentage of last week’s work time spent on_________?
• 5Last week, which business activity took up the second most amount of your work-time? Was it:?
• 5aPlease estimate the percentage of last week’s work time spent on________?
• 6ALast week, did you spend any time at all working on selling or marketing?
• 6BLast week, did you spend any time at all working on producing goods or services?
• 6CLast week, did you spend any time at all working on producing goods or services?
• 6DLast week, did you spend any time at all working on planning, strategizing?
• 6ELast week, did you spend any time at all working on employee-related matters?
• 6FLast week, did you spend any time at all working on customer service or relations?
• 6GLast week, did you spend any time at all working on learning or gathering information?
• 7Do you think you are personally allocating the right amount of time on the various jobs you perform in the business, or are you spending too much time on some things and not enough on others?
• 8In which area do you think you are spending too LITTLE time:?
• 8aIs there a second area where you are spending too LITTLE time?
• 8a1What is it?
• 9In which area do you think you are spending too MUCH of your time?
• 9aIs there a second area where you are spending too MUCH time?
• 9a1What is it?
• 10Do you have any employees working in the business, NOT including yourself, who have managerial or supervisory responsibilities as part of their job?
• 10aHow many such employees do you have?
• 10bHow many employees are PRIMARILY managers or supervisors and have few tasks or responsibilities other than to manage or supervise employees?
• 11Not counting yourself, does this business have a Chief Financial Officer or the equivalent, someone largely responsible for handling the firm’s budget and its books?
• 12Do you do ALL of the business’s hiring and firing?
• 13Of all the jobs you have in the business, which do you enjoy doing the most? Is it:?
• 13aDo you have a second most favorite job?
• 13a1What is it?
• 14Of all the jobs you have in the business, which do you enjoy doing the least? Is it:?
• 14aDo you have a second least favorite job?
• 14a1What is it?
• 15Does the principal owner of this business spend time in the day-to-day management of the firm?
• 15aWhat does the owner primarily do in the firm? Does he or she primarily:?